Taipei motorists racked up a record-breaking NT$4.3 billion in tickets last year, thanks in part to higher fines, the city's Office of Traffic Adjudication said yesterday.
The figure is roughly NT$16 million higher than the amount of fines for 2000, the office said.
But while motorists paid more in fines last year, the number of traffic tickets issued dropped.
According to officials, traffic cops issued 3.75 million tickets last year. That compares to the 4.34 million tickets issued to motorists in 2000.
Changes to traffic laws last year are one reason why motorists paid more in fines. The changes went into effect on June 1 and raised fines for several traffic violations.
In addition, Yeh Tsu-chuan (葉梓銓), deputy chief of the traffic office, said the agency has been more aggressive in collecting outstanding fines left over from previous years.
"To close those cases, our clerks kept contacting motorists and constantly pushed them to pay their fines," Yeh said.
"Obviously, it worked last year, because many of these motorists came to the office and paid their tickets and closed their cases."
In related news, the National Police Administration said police officers will begin to strictly enforce traffic laws for motorcycle and scooter riders beginning on the first day of next month.
Specifically, the police administration plans to go after motorcycle and scooter riders who make illegal right turns at red lights.
In addition, motorcycle and scooter riders caught making left turns along with car traffic will be fined. By law, riders must make left turns by crossing an intersection twice -- a process that requires them to wait through two signal changes.
Also, Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), who in the past year has resurfaced many of the city's sidewalks with new tiles, has vowed to get tough on motorcycle and scooter riders who drive on the sidewalks.
Ma says motorists can push their scooters to find a parking space.
According to the administration's statistics, there are more than 11 million motorcycles and scooters.
But there aren't enough parking spaces for scooters or dedicated traffic lanes, administration officials said.
"We don't have enough lanes and parking spaces for these motorcycles and scooters," said Diao Chien-sheng (
"As a result, many riders drive in lanes that are for cars exclusively, or park their motorcycles and scooters illegally on sidewalks," Diao said. "This behavior endangers other people's safety, so we must crack down."
According to the police administration's numbers, 49 percent of all traffic deaths involve motorcycles or scooters.
"We will keep working on amending the traffic law and try to create more space for motorcycles and scooters," Diao said.
"But in the meantime, police officers will begin their strict crackdown on riders who violate the traffic law beginning on March 1."
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